In The Name of Allaah, The Most Merciful, The Bestower of Mercy

Everything Allāh Says Is Truth

Allāh said: [وَٱللَّهُ يَقُولُ ٱلۡحَقَّ وَهُوَ يَهۡدِى ٱلسَّبِيلَ – Allah says the truth, and He guides to the (Right) Way]. [Surah Al-Ahzaab. Aayah 4]

This noble verse makes it explicitly clear that indeed Allah [The Exalted] says the truth, and that is truthfulness and certainty in His reports, perfect justice and wisdom in His commands and prohibitions. Everything He has stated is absolute truth and a fact that conforms to true reality, and beneficial for the servants as a means of rectifying their creed, manners, religion and worldly affairs. Everything He has commanded is righteousness, goodness, benevolence, a perfect benefit and a blessing. And everything He has forbidden is evil, harm and corruption, and this applies to both religious and worldly affairs. The entire Islamic legislation is a detail explanation and clarification of this mighty fundamental principle stated by Allah in this verse and other than it. Then Allāh said: [وَهُوَ يَهۡدِى ٱلسَّبِيلَ – And He [Allāh] guides to the (Right) Way]- the path that leads to the truth which He [Allah] mentioned and through which He judges. So, Allah took it upon himself that He must explain and clarify this wholesome truth through manifest intellectual and textual proofs, as He said in another verse:

سَنُرِيهِمۡ ءَايَـٰتِنَا فِى ٱلۡأَفَاقِ وَفِىٓ أَنفُسِہِمۡ حَتَّىٰ يَتَبَيَّنَ لَهُمۡ أَنَّهُ ٱلۡحَقُّ‌ۗ

We will show them Our Signs in the universe, and in their own selves, until it becomes manifest to them that this (the Qur’an) is the truth. [Surah Fussilat. Aayah 53]

Signs and Proofs in The Universe That Shows Us the Oneness of Allāh

Indeed, when He [The Exalted] informed us about His Oneness and that He alone is the One singled out in Perfection in every way; then commanded us to worship Him alone without partners and that the religion should be established sincerely for Him alone, and stated that His speech is truth, His promise and threat are true, and that His Messenger and His book is truth; He then stated that He must show them signs in themselves and in the universe of that which will make it clear that He is The Truth, and that everything else worshiped besides Him is false. The signs in the universe and the signs within themselves all confirm these mighty fundamentals through which it is known that Allah is The Truth, and that His Speech, His Book [i.e. the Qur’aan] and the Religion He has ordained are truth.  As for the signs in the universal this is found in His statement:

إِنَّ فِى خَلۡقِ ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٲتِ وَٱلۡأَرۡضِ وَٱخۡتِلَـٰفِ ٱلَّيۡلِ وَٱلنَّہَارِ لَأَيَـٰتٍ۬ لِّأُوْلِى ٱلۡأَلۡبَـٰبِ

“Verily! In the creation of the heavens and the earth, and in the alternation of night and day, there are indeed signs for men of understanding”. [Surah Aal Imraan. Aayah 190]

And in His [The Most High] statement:

إِنَّ فِى خَلۡقِ ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٲتِ وَٱلۡأَرۡضِ وَٱخۡتِلَـٰفِ ٱلَّيۡلِ وَٱلنَّهَارِ وَٱلۡفُلۡكِ ٱلَّتِى تَجۡرِى فِى ٱلۡبَحۡرِ بِمَا يَنفَعُ ٱلنَّاسَ وَمَآ أَنزَلَ ٱللَّهُ مِنَ ٱلسَّمَآءِ مِن مَّآءٍ۬ فَأَحۡيَا بِهِ ٱلۡأَرۡضَ بَعۡدَ مَوۡتِہَا وَبَثَّ فِيہَا مِن ڪُلِّ دَآبَّةٍ۬ وَتَصۡرِيفِ ٱلرِّيَـٰحِ وَٱلسَّحَابِ ٱلۡمُسَخَّرِ بَيۡنَ ٱلسَّمَآءِ وَٱلۡأَرۡضِ لَأَيَـٰتٍ۬ لِّقَوۡمٍ۬ يَعۡقِلُونَ

“Verily! In the creation of the heavens and the earth, and in the alternation of night and day, and the ships which sail through the sea with that which is of use to mankind, and the water (rain) which Allah sends down from the sky and makes the earth alive therewith after its death, and the moving (living) creatures of all kinds that He has scattered therein, and in the veering of winds and clouds which are held between the sky and the earth, are indeed Ayat (proofs, evidences, signs, etc.) for people of understanding.” [Surah Al-Baqarah Aayah 164]

There are many verses in which Allāh informs us about the affairs of the universe and that they are signs and proofs which shows The Oneness of Allāh, His truthfulness and the truthfulness of His Messengers. Therefore, the One Who brought these mighty creations into existence with these amazing characteristics, based on this amazing system and thoroughly completed creation, with perfection and beauty, is The One singled out in Lordship and the Only Deity worthy of worship – the One with vast, All-Encompassing Mercy and Wisdom, and He is The One Who encompasses all things in His Knowledge. So, The One Whose affair is as such has the right to be worshiped alone without partners, thanked and remembered due to His All-Encompassing Perfect Benevolence and the blessings He has bestowed (on the creation).

The mighty creations found in the universe shows the Perfection of His Ability and The Greatness of His Authority. The amazing beautiful organisation within it and creation that is thoroughly completed in all ways shows His unique, All-Encompassing Perfect Wisdom and that He alone is worthy of all Praise. And that which is found in it of various things of a specific nature shows the enforcement of His All-Encompassing Perfect Will and Intent. And that which is found in it of benefits and welfare for the servants, which can neither be enumerated nor can its varieties be counted let alone its various types as well as those of a distinct characteristic, are all a proof of His vast Mercy, His vast Grace, kindness, Generosity and Benevolence. All of this is proof to show that it is obligatory to worship Him alone and perform deeds sincerely for His Sake, and that He Who brought these mighty creations into existence is able to revive the dead and He is able to do all things.

The Signs Within Ourselves

As for the signs within themselves, Allāh said: [وفي أنفسكم أفلا تبصرون – And also in your ownselves. Will you not then see?] [Adh-Dhaariyaat. Aayah 21]

[أولم ير الإنسان أنا خلقناه من نطفة فإذا هو خصيم مبين – Does not man see that We have created him from Nutfah (mixed male and female discharge semen drops). Yet behold! He (stands forth) as an open opponent]. [Surah Yaa Seen. Aayah 77]

[فلينظر الإنسان مم خلق خلق من ماء دافق – So let man see from what he is created! He is created from a water gushing forth]. [Surah At-taariq. Aayaat 5-6]

And that which is similar to these verses in which Allāh notifies the human being to contemplate and look at the beginning of his creation; the stages of his development and the way he alternated from one state to another from a drop of water until he became a complete human in his body and mind; and the way Allāh perfected his creation and put him in this amazing order with every limb he needs for everything that is of benefit to him and every limb in its suitable place, which would not have been suitable except in its rightful place. [An Excerpt from Ad-Dalaa’il Al-Qur’aaniyyah Fee Annal Uloom Wal-A’maal An-Naafi’ah Al-Asriyyah Daakhilatun Fid Deen Al-Islaamiy. page 2-3 slightly paraphrased]

How to Approach The Contemporary Worldly Sciences

Shaikh Saaleh Aala Ash-Shaikh [may allaah preserve him] said: The Messenger [peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him] said: Verily, the creation of each of you is brought together in his mother’s womb for forty days as a drop [of water, semen], then he is a clot for a similar period, then a morsel for a similar period…. [An-Nawawi’s Forty Hadeeth. Hadeeth 4]

It is well known that during that era, the Sahaabah did not know these stages (of development of the human being in the womb) through experimental knowledge, vision [i.e. by way X-rays or ultrasound that enables the human to see something in the womb) or other than that; rather it was simply (a statement of the Prophet) which they (believed and affirmed). They were scholars by way of the revelation sent down to the Prophet and not by way of experimentation (examination). [Sharh Al-Arba’een. Hadeeth 4]

Imaam Muhammad Bin Saaleh Al-Uthaymeen [may Allaah have mercy upon him] said: We do not say, “We do not give consideration to anything stated by the people in the subject matter regarding medicine, astronomy and the celestial bodies”, however, we do not accept everything they say. If what they say opposes the Book and the (authentic) Sunnah, then indeed we do not accept their statements. We take [i.e. believe and affirm without any doubt] that which is conveyed in the Book and the Sunnah], and we say, “An era will come in which the people will bear witness to the falsity of those statements of theirs – at present – that are in opposition to the Book and Sunnah and (bear witness) to the soundness of that which has been conveyed in the Book and the Sunnah. [An excerpt from the ‘Explanation of Bulooghul Maraam’ Vol 1. page 130. Shared by Ustaadh abu Tasneem (Mushaf Al-Banghaalee- may Allaah preserve him)]

Imaam Abdul Azeez Bin Baaz [may Allaah have mercy upon him] said: Indeed, that which is stated by the astronomers about the celestial bodies, their sizes and the distance between them, and that which is said about the earth [i.e. by the geologists etc] is categorized into three affairs: [a] That which is backed by the sound knowledge-based proofs [i.e. the Sharee’ah], therefore it is accepted. [b] That which the knowledge-based proofs [i.e. the sharee’ah] declares to be false, therefore it is rejected. [c] That which there is no proof to either accept or reject it, therefore it is unproven until a person from the people of knowledge [i.e. upright scholars of Ahlus Sunnah] examines it [i.e. examines what it indicates based on the Book and Sunnah] to show whether it should be accepted or rejected. As for accepting it without [sound] investigation and observation, but merely accepting it by blindly following them [i.e. the astronomers, geologists etc], then this is impermissible because of the numerous mistakes that occur as a result of that, and speaking -without knowledge – about Allaah and that which He has created [i.e. the entire universe and all that is within it]. [An Excerpts from ‘Al-Adillah An-Naqliyyah Wal-Hissiyyah Alaa Imkaanis Su’ood Ilal Kawaakib Wa Alaa Jarayaan Ash-Shams Wal-Qamar Wa Sukoon Al-Ard’ page 74. slightly paraphrased]

Therefore, we return to those honest investigators – those students of sound Aqeedah who are well acquainted with both the statements of the upright scholars and the contemporary worldly sciences, such as the likes of Dr. Shaikh Abu Iyaadh Amjad Rafiq [may Allaah preserve him, increase him in beneficial knowledge and righteous deeds. And likewise preserve all the students and Ahlus Sunnah Aameen]. Read: Understanding the Two Definitions of ‘Science’ in Operation – By Shaikh Dr. Abu Iyaadh: http://www.aboutatheism.net/articles/juvtbpd-understanding-the-two-definitions-of-science-and-scientific-enquiry.cfm